


Green-Eyed Monster

by Iris_Celeno



Category: Code Black (TV)
Genre: Budding Love, Christa is oblivious, Cole cameo, F/M, Humor, Mario is Mayonnaise, Missing Scene, One-Shot, Residents friendship, Tag for 1x06, We-know-who is jealous
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-30
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-18 18:00:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8170757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iris_Celeno/pseuds/Iris_Celeno
Summary: The one where Mario finds out...even before it happens.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [annlina](https://archiveofourown.org/users/annlina/gifts).



> I went for first-person (Mario) POV for this one. T rating for a liberal use of the F word.  
> Non beta-ed, please forgive any mistake you might find.

“Dr.Hudson, it isn't a big deal...” 

“It's protocol, Christa, and I can't believe it was overlooked.”

I was passing by the examination area on my way to the locker room when I caught the bribes of conversation. The stern reply prompted me to do a double take. Neal Hudson was a mild-mannered guy and only expressed his discontent through a harsh edge to his voice. Yet precisely because Neal Hudson was mild-mannered, he also only expressed his discontent in case of major screw-up and that harsh edge was enough to give me or anyone, really, the feeling of being hauled over the coals by Sergeant Foley. 

“You're making too much of it...” Christa insisted.

She sounded unfazed. Considering how often I was trying to throw Dr Oh-So-Respectable Lorenson off balance, mostly to no avail, I was well aware that it was her social default mode. She was no fool though, and should have known better than contradicting a pissed-off Hudson. Moreover, the warm intonation of his curt speech would have been out of place if she were the target of his annoyance. Elementary deduction then, she wasn't. 

Problem: Christa and I shadowed him together today. If there was a breach in protocol and it wasn't her fault, it would be mine. Since Hudson had inexplicably lashed out at me in Center Stage about the shot kid, the last thing I wanted was a redux; and a rapid mental review of the day's cases left me with no answer. So in order to be apprised of what I did wrong and prepare my defense, I silently sneaked inside the adjacent area. Protected by the curtains, I could eavesdrop...

And the first thing I registered was the unmistakable beeping sound of an ECG being switched on. How come? Shift officially ended two minutes ago and I had just sent our last patient to surgery. Out of sheer curiosity, I leaned against the wall so I could peek from behind the curtain that separated my space and theirs without being seen. 

Christa was installed on a stretcher under a sterile drape, electrodes in place. Hudson was standing next to her and setting the machine up. 

Oh, _that_ breach of protocol. Of course.

“You were victim of an electric shock, Christa,” he was explaining.

He appeared reasonable and collected, as always...mostly. I noticed a slight tension in his demeanor. He was moody today, a rare occurence. Maybe he had personal issues.

“It wasn't that big,” she protested again.

Without a word, he grabbed her right hand and raised it, exposing thin but purple red burns on her fingers where the scissors had played the role of electrical conductor. It was my turn to be shocked. Of course she took the hit, but I didn't think she was hurt that bad with her surgical gloves on. She said she was OK, and she didn't seem particularly in pain.

The amount of contained...was it _anger?_ that I could discern in Hudson's dark eyes wasn't less baffling.

“Try again. I saw how you recoiled. You should have been placed under surveillance ASAP. Someone should have thought of it. I should have thought of it...I'm sorry, Christa.” 

His initially scolding tone softened more and more as he spoke, my own nervousness receding along with it. Hudson was right, someone should have thought about a check-up. But I was relieved that he didn't get all worked up and decide to reprimand those who failed to...me, for example. I had my dose of coals for today, thank you.

“There's no need to apologize.” Christa was smiling yet resolute. “We were in the middle of one of the most chaotic situations we ever encountered so far...at least since the beginning of my residency. Everyone was overwhelmed. And no, I won't pretend it was a pleasant experience but it was just a jolt. I was in shape to work so one, me included, considered I was in need of care.”

“I wish I hadn't asked you to take such a risk to start with.”

He brushed a gentle thumb over the burns, only to let go of her hand and abruptly turn away to check the machine. I blinked.

What. The. Fuck? 

“Risks go with the territory. I'm a doctor, too, after all. Even if I'm not much of one,” Christa sighed.

I guess that her self-deprecation caught Hudson's attention as much as mine. He looked back at her, eyebrows arched in puzzlement.

“Why would you say such a thing?”

“Because I was scared to screw up, scared to get hurt, and I left the patient in danger and in pain longer than necessary.”

“Less than a minute?”

“Well, it must have been a very long minute for him.”

“Christa, you need to be certain of your gestures whenever you complete a procedure. In the ER the best is to act fast, but the worst is to rush. It's one of the main rules.”

Her hand had somehow landed in his again, and he squeezed it on his last words. 

It wasn't rare that Hudson cheered up one of us. He certainly offered comfort and/or compliments more often than Rorish or even Guthrie. Yet never so...affectionately. I didn't remember either that he ever looked so pleased with himself when a resident's face lit courtesy of his pep talk.

I couldn't repress a surge of bitterness. This was the main reason why Christa got on my nerves and I couldn't resist pestering her.  
She had that weird connection with Rorish, as if they belonged to a kind of private and exclusive club. I couldn't explain it, I couldn't define it, but it was tangible in every of their interactions.  
She didn't get any preferential treatment, of course, but her rapport with Jesse or Guthrie was subtly different on some level since they were all part of another club, the grown-ups; as for Malaya and Angus, for the same reason, they looked up to her as a big sister.  
Most of the nurses appreciated her; her volunteering for joining the quarantine zone last month had impressed. Taylor himself proudly referred to her as “Spunky Susan”.  
And now, even Hudson had a soft spot for her. What I had just witnessed bordered on a crush. 

I always had trouble to fit in and make friends. My fault, my responsibility, my trust issues, yeah. I knew I wasn't Mr. Congeniality. But Christa had it so easy that it was exasperating at times. She was the Prom Queen who breezed in and won everybody over with her puppy dog eyes and artless smile...everyone, including me. It was the most annoying about her. She was far from perfect but she genuinely cared about people. She made you want to be cared for. So it was quite hard to resent her or even dislike her on the long run.

“Ready for the exam?” he asked. 

She nodded; silence fell upon the room shortly after. Listening to the monotonous beeps of the ECG, I wondered what I should do. I checked my watch. I wasn't in trouble with Hudson after all, so I could go home. Nevertheless, I was now a little bit worried about Christa. She was most probably fine, but Hudson wasn't wrong. You never knew. So I decided to stay and looking away, I rested the back of my head against the wall. After all, the exam would last only a matter of minutes and if anyone came in, I was confident that I'd find an excuse for my presence. My years of addiction had trained me in the art of fibbing.

“Here we are,” Hudson finally announced. “I'm going to call Amy so that she takes off the electrodes.”

“Shift is over. No need to bother her again, or another nurse. I can do it myself.”

“I'll start checking your electrocardiogram, then.” 

For a short while, I only heard the sound of creasing fabric. Then Christa's voice again.

“Dr. Hudson...Thank you.”

“I'm just following protocol.”

“And you're stuck here after shift. I'm pretty sure that protocol doesn't demand it,” she pointed. “Also...”

She purposefully let her voice trail. Wondering what she had in mind, I peeked from behind the curtain again. Hopefully, curiosity wouldn't kill the Mario.

“Thank you for teaching me a rule that conveniently leaves me off the hook,” she quipped.

Yep, her puppy dog eyes had made another victim. Our attending was trying very hard not to look smitten and was very not good at it. 

“I stand by what I said. Listen, you managed a delicate procedure and saved your patient. At the end of the day, nothing else matters.”

I guessed that if something had been wrong with her heart, he'd have switched back to mother hen mode. Well then, it was time for me to leave...

“Yet honestly, I don't think I'd have managed it without Mario,” she remarked with a large smile.

The mention of my name had an unexpected effect: The temperature of the room went down several degrees. I froze, and a shudder ran down my back. What did I just say about curiosity?

Hudson was sporting a perfect British polite face, but I wasn't fooled and I felt a lump forming at the pit of my stomach.

Until a moment ago I had considered the guy as the only attending on my side whereas in fact, he hated my guts.

“Mario...” he repeated, his noncommittal expression belied by the speculative glint in his eyes.

Wait. Just wait. 

I had seen this glare directed at me before. It was after...

_Vodka Martini, just a little dirty._

Oh, fuck. 

All of a sudden, Hudson's loss of temper and volatile moods weren't so unexplicable anymore.

The particular warmth in his voice when he talked to her. The excessive worry. The hands brushing. The beguiled stares. And now the freaking green-eyed monster.

It “bordered” on a crush? No shit. The border was long out of sight in the rearview mirror.

So my head was reeling, Hudson was sulking and, impervious to the change of atmosphere, Christa was going on enthusiastically. 

“Yes. He was really great. Kicked my butt when I needed it and was so supportive otherwise. For a second, I thought I was the younger one,” she finished with a clear little laugh.

He was tensing a little more, his face was closing a little more with every of her words, and I found myself torn between rejoicing at her heartfelt praise and silently imploring her to please shut the fuck up. 

“Dr.Hudson, a problem with my results?” she asked when she finally realized how unreceptive he was.

“No,” he reassured her after clearing his throat. “Nothing with diagnostic value so far...”

He paused, seemed to hesitate...

“I didn't know that you and Mario were close. I had the feeling that you, Angus and Malaya didn't care much for him.”

He thinned his lips, as if he regretted his words. Well, that made two of us.

I knew that everyone hated my guts, thank you. Still, it stung to hear it.

I was aware that my attempts to follow Jesse's advice were too recent to be effective. Since Christa had never minced her words whenever confronting me with my attitude, I braced myself for the earful I was going to get. 

“Well, I was furious when...” She broke off. Then she seemed to choose her words with care, as if she suddenly remembered she was discussing with an attending and not a friend. “I mean, this program is hard enough, no need to make it worse with some lone wolf mentality.”

Hudson cracked a smile and his sullen expression made way for fondness. “I'm perfectly aware of what Mario did to Angus, you know.”

“I got fired on my first day,” she eluded. “Nobody's perfect. And thankfully, we can change and evolve.”

It hit me that a couple of months ago, I would have been incensed at the idea of Christa getting all chummy with an attending and discussing me of all people. I'd have suspected she'd use the connection to diss me. This time, it didn't even come to my mind...  
Oh, so it had entered my thick skull that not everyone was out there to get me. Nevertheless, I didn't expect she'd act as if she owed me any kind of loyalty in front of one of our bosses.

“After the way he encouraged me today, I'm convinced that it'd be great if he could truly be part of our group. If the four of us could be friends and have each other's back, this program would certainly be easier to survive.”

“Friends?” he repeated. 

Oh, surprise: Poof, gone the stormy gaze. 

I was officially friendzoned and I was entirely fine with it...well, except for a tiny-tiny bruise to my ego. Hey, Christa was hot in a MILF way and I was a man. But I was first and foremost a man with an acute sense of priorities and right now, avoiding pole position on my superior's shit list was definitely at the top of mine.

On the other hand, I inwardly facepalmed. She didn't seem to have a clue as to the reason behind Hudson's mood swings. Come on, she wasn't born yesterday. How could she _not_ notice? 

True, she wasn't at all the flirtatious kind. There was something about her attitude that screamed “unavailable” and all she ever talked about was work, procedures, patients, making it clear that she wasn't here to play in a real-life version of Grey's Anatomy. And true, in spite of my mind living in the gutter, I didn't notice anything either beyond the fact that those two got along well, which I used to put down to their closeness in age. I didn't imagine for one second that Boyscout Hudson could allow himself any attraction to a resident. 

But still...

“Yes, friends,” she acquiesced, frowning slightly. Her following words confirmed that she completely misunderstood the situation. “You think it's a bad idea? Do you have...nevermind.”

He ran his eyes over her face, let out a defeated sigh.

“No, Christa, I don't have a problem with Mario...” 

Coulda fooled me, but good to know.

“If it's about my attitude earlier in Center Stage, I was stressed out and I overreacted.”

“It happens,” she offered.

“I guess it does. But I should have made my point calmly instead of losing my temper.”

Since even the AA didn't manage to cure me of my deeply rooted tendency to hold grudges, I was accordingly floored when I realized that I didn't resent him for said overreaction.

He really had meant to teach and was sincerely contrite for his outburst. And if I had to be completely honest, he did have a point. I did assume too much about the entry wound. As it happened, I had been right; I could as well be wrong next time, with deadly consequences. Moreover and although it could be my so-called twisted mind speaking there, in a strange way the truth about the whole incident restored my confidence.  
Seriously, the man seemed to have no flaw. He was a talented doctor, a talented surgeon, a good teacher, had good bedside manners and as far as I knew always abode by his principles. He was level-headed, reliable, fair, unassuming, good-natured and a team-player. People liked him and respected him, I liked him and respected him...and I wanted his appreciation and his respect, too, which of course I would deny even under torture. It rendered him terribly intimidating and I was more scared of disappointing him than Rorish. The knowledge that I didn't this time, and also that he could fall from his pedestal and lose it for a woman like every other mortal, made me feel better somehow.

“I think it's an excellent idea,” he was going on. “Indeed, solidarity is a source of unsuspected strength and energy...it will make your work infinitely more efficient and needless to say, your life here infinitely more pleasant.”

“Was it like this for you, when you were a resident?” she asked with a sunny smile.

Bro had it even worse than I had thought. If he were an ice cream, he'd be melting all over the floor. He definitely deserved my compassion and not my wrath. 

“Depends on which residency you're talking about.” He reported his eyes on the electrocardiogram and concluded, “Everything is normal.”

“Great. Thanks.”

“No 'I told you so'?” he grinned.

“Not after you stayed after shift for my check-up...and even less if you're as hungry as I am.”

“I have to admit, I can't wait for breakfast.”

They gazed at each other for a wee bit longer than appropriate, then spoke at the same time.

“If you don't have plans...” 

“Unless you have plans...”

“Hudson!” Cole Guthrie boomed, barging in the examination area. “The blond nurse with glasses told me I'd find you here...”

He caught sight of the ECG and Christa.

“Nice job back there, Dr Lorenson. You OK?”

“Yes, thank you Dr Guthrie.”

“Good. Hudson, let's talk about that sly procedure you pulled out of your hat. Breakfast in my office, I'm buying. Meet me there in ten minutes.”

And without waiting for an answer, the surgeon left as brusquely as he had come in. He didn't even bother to close the curtain behind him.

A stunned silence followed his departure.

“Dr Guthrie likes you!” I heard Christa tease as I finally slip away.

I was back in the corridor just as Hudson was proposing “Rain check?”

“Ah, Dr.Hudson,” I called as if I had been looking for him. “I'm done with...”

Modeling my behavior on Guthrie Jr's, I pretended to notice Christa and the machine. 

“You OK?” I asked her, careful to inject contrition and nothing that could remotely pass as romantic interest to jealous eyes. In other words, I acted the exact opposite of Hudson. “Sorry, I didn't think of it.”

“Don't worry about it, Dr.Savetti. It wasn't your responsibility.” Boyscout was back.

“I'm fine, thanks. And thanks for your support back there. I really appreciate.”

I should have been vexed that her face didn't light like a Christmas tree when she smiled at _me_. In this particular instance I simply hoped that man with a crush noted the blatant difference. 

I shrugged, “No problem” just as the text alarm of her phone rang.

“Seems that I have plans now,” she commented while reading the screen.

She shared a glance with Hudson, which I couldn't decipher. So they were doing the talk with the eyes thing already? 

“Mario...you'd like to have breakfast with Malaya, Angus and me?”

He didn't seem to mind her invitation, but I stayed careful. 

“Well, I was supposed to have a date but she just cancelled...so why not. Dr Hudson, you join us?”

“He can't,” Christa answered in his stead, eyes twinkling. “Dr Hudson has a hot date. With Dr Guthrie.”

He rolled his eyes but was unable to contain a a wide grin. I had to admit that her good humor was infectious even when you weren't terminally infatuated with her.

“You'll pay for this lack of respect during next shift, Christa. Now go.” 

I didn't miss the regretful inflexion on his last sentence.

“Thank you again.” Her Christmas Tree smile was firmly in place. “And see you then. Come on, Mario!”

I couldn't help taking a peek over my shoulder as we left. He was looking in our direction but he didn't even notice my move. His gaze was like glued to her. Only her, not the two of us. Phew. My status of invisible man meant one thing: The green-eyed monster was tamed. 

“By the way, next shift, I'll shadow Dr.Rorish,” Christa told me in confidence as soon as we were out of earshot. 

She winked at me and I heard myself guffaw. We were used to trading superficial banter but it was the first time since I backstabbed Angus that she truly included me when she joked.

I warned her. “He'll wait for the following one, you know.”

“Probably. He's persistent.” 

Her gaze was soft, her smile glowing, her voice tinged with admiration and affection as she evoked him. She might not be aware of her own feelings but clearly, his interest wasn't unrequited. 

I couldn't repress a wry smile. Hudson was so British and was having it so bad...Now that I could safely watch from the bench, this was going to be fun. 

“Christa!” Malaya called as she spotted us. She and Angus had already changed out of theirs scrubs. “What kept you?”

Christa explained and reassured our colleagues about her health condition, then announced that “we” would all have breakfast. I noticed that Malaya was less than enthusiastic about my presence. The others didn't shun me out at work, we were professionals. But I was excluded so far from their get-togethers during personal time.

Angus wasn't overjoyed either at first. Yet when Christa and I joined them in front of the stairs outside after a quick trip to the locker room, he seemed to have changed his mind.

“You know what?” he shared as we were crossing the street. “This shift was hell and I want food...”

“You always want food,” Malaya piped up. 

“Lots of food”, Christa added.

“Yeah, well, my metabolism is of the demanding kind. I was saying, I want food, I want a drink...don't joke about my choice of happy hour beverage again,” he warned. “Hi Hector! One Corona here!”

We settled around a formica table. Christa was the only one to decline alcohol. 

“And above all I want to relax and have fun and talk about anything but medicine,” he added, “So girls, put your righteousness on the shelf, OK? I want gossip! Lots of gossip.”

He passed his arm around my shoulder. “Come on, Rumor Mill! What juicy news do you have in store for me?”

I stared at him.

“The sleaze from Surgery sleeps with a resident and two nurses at the same time. According to some, literally at the same time,” I finally offered, eliciting a whistle from him while Malaya and Christa rolled their eyes in disgust.

Then the latter gave me a friendly smile.

Yes, I probably had the hottest piece of gossip in a decade up my sleeve. Yes, it was tempting to tease her with it. But if I wanted to be Mayonnaise, I had to maintain a sense of priorities...and learn to shup my yapper.

**Author's Note:**

> Of course Neal was overly harsh with Mario because he was jealous of his flirting with Christa earlier. My story, my (head)canon.  
> You narrowly escaped people happily chatting during an ECG (silly me, first version went to the trashcan) but there are probably other mistakes re: medicine. Sorry about it.  
> Many thanks to annlina for her precious support :)  
> If you missed your weekly dose of Christeal and of Original Recipe Code Black as much as I did, I hope this fic brought you some enjoyment. Thanks for reading!


End file.
